Wife fears for Australian abducted in Syria

The wife of an Australian man who was abducted in Syria last year has grave concerns for his safety.

Muhammad Yusuf Alkakouni disappeared in the country six months ago, and his wife Saphia says he has not been heard from since.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFAT) has confirmed a Syrian-Australian man was abducted in June.

Mr Alkakouni's name has now appeared on a list of 108 foreigners arrested by the Syrian government for allegedly engaging in terrorist activities.

Ms Alkakouni says her husband was running a business in Syria when he disappeared.

"The Syrian police surround, say for example like a suburb, they surround it and they just grab all the guys there, whoever they want to grab they just grab them and take them, and you don't know where they go," she told PM.

"I've tried his mobile number, I've tried asking people. No-one seems to know at all for the past six months now.

"[I am] extremely worried. The last piece of information I heard was ... he's been injured in his legs. There's some sort of injuries."

Ms Alkakouni and her husband are both Australian citizens, but they had been living in Syria for five years before the conflict started.

She says he returned to Australia briefly during that time for business.

Mr Alkakouni's name has now appeared on an Assad government list of 108 foreigners it claims has been arrested for terrorism.

According to the Assad government's list of arrested foreigners, Mr Alkakouni was associated with a terrorist group in the city of Daara, where the couple lived.

The list was sent to the United Nations general assembly in October.

'Dead or alive?'

Ms Alkakouni says she has tried to get information from DFAT but has not had much luck.

"He's an Australian citizen ... I actually spoke to the Department of Foreign Affairs today and they said we can't get any information from there," she said.

"It's like, two governments talking to each other, why isn't there any information being passed over, why can't we know if he's dead or alive?

"I mean that's the issue now. We just want to know is he alive, where is he, why can't we bring him back? He didn't do anything."

Foreign Minister Bob Carr says the Federal Government has made a number of attempts to track down Mr Alkakouni.

Why can't we know if he's dead or alive? We just want to know is he alive, where is he, why can't we bring him back? He didn't do anything.

Saphia al-Kalkuni

"Our interests are being represented in Syria by the Hungarian embassy there and they've made representations on at least two occasions to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Syria, but they've provided no information," he said.

He says he will follow up Ms Alkakouni's claims that she is not getting enough help to find her husband.

"I'm happy to check with the department that they're keeping her informed but I must say it's very difficult to get information in Syria," he said.

"We've been advising Australians since April 2011 that the situation there is extremely dangerous and that Australians should not stay there, should not go there."

DFAT says there are 67 Australian passport holders currently in Syria and they have been urged to leave on multiple occasions.

It is believed at least three Australians have died in the conflict, which the United Nations says has killed at least 60,000 people.

Ms Alkakouni has now returned to Australia with her three children.

"It's very, very stressful. Sometimes you just don't know if you want to wake up in the morning and actually move on with your life," she said.

"But you've got to do something for these kids, because that's the most important thing now."